Set Your Browser to Always Open to AmazonSmile

If you forgetful, there is a free app that you can download for Google Chrome that will automatically redirect your browser to smile.amazon.com whenever you visit amazon.com. Don’t miss a single opportunity to give a percentage of your spending to charity! Click here to download and install this app on your computer: SmileAlways (remember it works only for Google Chrome so if you use another browser like Firefox or Safari, you must type in smile.amazon.com in order to have a portion of your spend go to charity).

If you use amazon to purchase business supplies, gifts, or personal items, then you can feel good knowing that with every purchase you are giving back to a great cause of your choosing!! Share the gift of giving yourself by spreading the word about AmazonSmile through an email blast on PawLoyalty kennel software so that you’re customers will also be inspired to donate as they shop.

This is an easy way to give back without extending your To Do list. You have nothing to lose, while others have so much to gain by this simple task of shopping through AmazonSmile. You’ll surely create more smiles around the world when you do!

Throw Us a Bone!

What other charities would you recommend? Do you know any other easy ways to donate?

2. Set a timer.

Look at your to-do list and estimate the amount of time it takes to do each of them. One of the most common mistakes is to underestimate the time that it will take to complete tasks. Don’t set yourself up for failure by ambitiously allotting a short amount of time for each task thinking that less time will prompt you to finish sooner. Give yourself realistic goal times then set a timer and get focused. Tell yourself: for the next ‘x” number of minutes, I will only work on this project. At the end of the time, see if your time estimate was correct so that you can more accurately budget time in the future.

3. Remove unnecessary distractions.

Close the tabs on your web browser. Don’t even think about checking your Facebook. In fact, set your phone to silent and don’t think about email. There will always be an employee or customer that needs your assistance, but they can wait for you to get essential tasks done. While it is important to stay in contact with employees and customers, let them know ahead of time that you are blocking out time specifically for important tasks.

4. Work in a private space.

Don’t try to work with your employees and dogs around just in case you are needed. This doesn’t usually work. Whether you are at the facility office trying to get work done or at home with the family, find alone time. It is ok to put a sign on the door that says “Please don’t interrupt unless it is an emergency”. You will get fewer interruptions and be able to maximize your focused time.

5. Designate tasks to other employees.

You have employees to take the workload off of you so become comfortable with delegating tasks to other employees. Don’t treat your facility as a one-man show (remember the popular acronym for TEAM - together everyone achieves more). Everyone likes to have control, but you should trust your staff to work independently, trust your managers to supervise them, and trust that you have trained them well.

PawLoyalty kennel software’s Referred By Report will help you keep track of your marketing efforts. You don’t have to crunch numbers to see the results of your marketing and advertising. One glance at the report will tell you which referral sources are generating the most customers and which sources are bringing in the most amount of revenue. Now you can plan strategies around your best referral campaigns in order to boost results for the next quarter!

In addition to that, the easy check-in and check-out process will free up more time to work on your To Do List. There is also a Quick Check-in feature so that when customers walk in unexpectedly, it won’t take more than 2 minutes to check them in and get back to what you were doing. Let kennel software’s features make work easier for you and your employees.

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How do you keep focused when running your dog business?

1. Find comfort in family and friends.

The place to always go for any type of comfort is your close family and friends. They may not completely understand what pet loss feels like, especially if they have never been pet owners themselves, but they do understand you on a personal level and your needs when you’re feeling melancholy. These are the people that want to be there for you, so don’t feel as if you are burdening them with your feelings. They want to help lighten the load.

The ones who had their own relationships with your pet, those who were petsitters for a weekend can understand your loss better than others. They can talk and smile with you over cherished memories--yours and theirs. 

2. Find comfort in other pet parents.

Sometimes we simply need the comfort of others who know what we’re going through through their own experiences. The place to go is the comfort of your pet owning friends, especially those whom have seen the entire process through to recovery. They will be able to relate to most of what you are feeling and share their own ways of coping. They are examples of the peace that lies ahead.

3. Find comfort in support groups and counselors.

All the stressful feelings and behaviors that tend to go hand-in-hand with grief may put you in a place where you feel defeated and not in control of yourself. The place to go to understand this human process is a pet loss support group. They will be able to help you understand normal human responses and how to ease the pain especially when you have to work or handle a family.

4. Find comfort in your pet service provider.

When you have to take the next step of notifying your pet service provider that they should remove a deceased pet from their kennel management software, it could provide you with an opportunity to open up to a professional who has spent time with your pet. Many pet service providers are aware of the pain of pet loss and want to comfort their clients to the best of their ability. Their services aren’t limited to the time between check-in and check-out. The best of them have worked their way to becoming your friends and you should not hesitate give them a call because, as pet lovers themselves, they will understand.

5. Find comfort in asking for all the details.

Some places of comfort may even seem uncomfortable at first—like asking “What happened?” Asking any questions that are nagging at your conscience, especially those revolving around guilt, will help you find relief. You may even find yourself wanting forgiveness for any role you feel you played in your pet’s death. PawLoyalty pet resort software’s Pet Health Record can help flesh out the events prior to your pet’s passing. Inform your vet of their behaviors and diet during their stay at a facility. Pet service providers can add special notes, which will give a vet insight as to how odd behaviors and lack of appetite may have been indicative of illness. You can only discover real closure when your mind can finally make sense of any unclear details.

Grieving doesn’t have to leave you in solitude. You have several people who genuinely care about you and will help you pick yourself up during a difficult time. Have the courage to seek them out and offer your own shoulder to other pet parents who are just starting their own grieving process.

Throw Us a Bone!

What advice can you give for those who are experiencing the loss of a pet?

Need an outlet to lift your mood during a stressful day at work? We all experience stress whether we want to acknowledge it or not.

In a 2012 survey on stress by the American Psychological Association (APA), "Almost three-quarters (72%) of respondents say that their stress level has increased or stayed the same over the past five years and 80% say their stress level has increased or stayed the same in the past year. Only 20% said their stress level has decreased in the past year."

This means that the majority of people surveyed were aware that they experienced high stress levels, but they still failed to do anything to remedy it. If you can relate, then this article is for you.

Why we must deal with stress:
According to the APA, job pressure is the #1 cause of stress. It is all too common for small business owners to keep pushing themselves because they want to “get everything done now” or to not take seriously the high level of stress that they often experience. While it may seem convenient to work now and relax later, you are also putting yourself at risk for hypertension, headaches, upset stomachs, and a low immune system. Stress affects more than just your mental state; your physical body is being affected as well.

77% of people usually experience physical symptoms such as fatigue, headache, upset stomach, muscle tension, and change in appetite. (APA)

Don’t let yourself get to the point of illness, especially when stress is avoidable! This article is for when you need some quick and convenient relief from a hectic day at work! Here are a few simple things you can do at the beginning of your lunch or on your break for 10 minutes:

1. Listen to a soothing song.

Songs have the tendency to alter moods. Take your iPod to work or turn the Pandora music app on during your lunch break. (Just don’t forget your headphones!) Find a song that you know will uplift your morning or calm your nerves. Some jazz, soul, or piano instrumental could do just the trick! Have a playlist with go-to songs that have worked in the past. This way you don’t have to spend time searching through your iPod when you can just focus on relaxing.

Here are some song recommendations (Plug them into Pandora as well for similar songs):

1. Let’s Stay Together by Al Green—Songs by artists like Otis Redding or Al Green have so much soul you can’t help but sway a little to the smoothness of the song. 
2. Man in the Mirror by Michael Jackson—Who doesn’t love MJ? This song is motivating, uplifting, and overall very catchy! It’s a personal favorite that usually makes me feel inspired to go out and “make a change”! 
3. River Flows in You by Yiruma—This is a great piano piece that is all instrumental and will put you in a state of tranquility, which is exactly what you need to be at peace for a few moments at work. 

2. Stretch

Tense muscles are a direct result of stress buildup. Plus, with running a pet facility, you’ll gain a few aches while having to clean the floors, pick up waste, and bend over to feed multiple dogs. Physically, stretching will increase circulation; blood flow will reduce the soreness from working your muscles. Overall, stretching relaxes tension and boosts endorphins throughout the body, which will make your mood feel lighter.

Click here to see the Mayo Clinic’s recommendations for stretches you can easily do in the office. These stretches are made for convenience so feel free to do a few moves while still keeping watch over the dogs.

3. Arm and Hand Acupressure

Ever heard of a shiatsu massage? This is also known as the Asian artform, acupressure, to get your energy flowing and your body healing. This is a trick you can do anywhere and it’s a little more discreet than stretching. Acupressure is about pinpointing “acupoints,” or places to apply pressure, that run along the body. Applying pressure to the right spots is said to improve your health, relieve stress, and provide a balance of energy.

Here are ways to apply acupressure:

1. Where the thumb and index finger connect is a pressure point. Squeeze this soft area for three second and do the same to the other hand. 
2. Locate the side of the hand right below your pinky. Take the index and middle finger of your other hand and tap on side of your hand while interchanging these two fingers just like how you would tap your fingers on a table. 

4. Browse YouTube or Vine

There are a ton of funny videos that you can watch during your break. One way to relieve stress is to just laugh. Vine is an app that is full of minute long videos that are perfect for quick entertainment. Be inspired even! People use YouTube to showcase their talents all the time. On the homepage, there is a list of popular videos. Follow a song playlist, subscribe to a few funny YouTubers or Viners and play on!

Here are a few videos to get you started:

1. YouTube: Slow Motion Fetch because practice makes perfect comedy. 
2. YouTube: What My Beagle Does When We Aren’t Home proves that you should never leave your chicken nuggets in the toaster oven when your pet is a genius. 
3. Vine: Norman the Scooter Dog. Look him up on Vine! He’s pretty amazing. 

5. Visualization

Did you know that you can exercise your mind in the form of daydreaming? Take yourself to a place far away from work—a beach maybe? It is said that visualization is key to exercising your brain activity.

The point of all of these tips is to focus and refresh yourself! Don’t let anyone interrupt you during this “me time”. Sometimes just talking to another co-worker or employee can get you stressed out. Take yourself out of the work room mentally and remember that you need to be in a relaxed and positive mindset for yourself and for your clients.

6. Go for a Walk or Bike Ride

Dan Pallota, founder of the charity walk Breast Cancer 3-Days, guest writes on the Harvard Business Review blog that when he is mentally exhausted, he goes for a walk for several reasons:

1. To think more creatively. 
2. To expose himself to sunlight, which boosts serotonin levels. 
3. To free himself from distractions so he can focus on one thing at a time. 

Plus, walking or biking are both forms of exercise, so they’ll get those endorphins going!

So what should you do next? MAKE TIME!

Your kennel software has got you covered! It’s is a great resource for faster performance and increased productivity. How? You will cut down on the time it takes to book customers and confirm appoints, to check them in & out, and to update their pets’ medical records. Don’t fall into the “I don’t have time for this” trap that the workload creates. You DO have the time to take care of yourself.

Take the first step, check out our Demo, and see if this dog training software can better you and your business!

Throw Us A Bone!

What are some ways you de-stress when work is hounding you?